Wandering Ha Noi, Viet Nam #3

Still roaming around Ha Noi.....The capital city of Viet Nam....

Apparently, I have so many stories to tell, yet so little time to do so..well, story of my life :D> (aaah, jadi curcol :D)....

By the way...this series of photos should come before my Ha Noi saga #2...as I really took my freedom to have a leisure walk in the park...

By the time I arrived in Hoan Kiem Lake, I immediately took a deep breath and smiled..

Yuuup...early morning fresh air proved to be a good dose of energy to start my day..

After briefly walking around the same corner last night, my eyes captured lovely green water of the lake and realized that this very spot was as vibrant as last night..(wanna know what happened last night? Check out my previous page :D)

Families of young and old jogged and joked around....

Lovebirds with locking hands intimately sat on the bench..

Solitaires sat on the bench waiting...

who are you waiting for, girl...

Kids kicked the balls toys on the pathwalk...








Grannies on wheelchair smiled to passersby...

Mommies lined up for a refreshing tai chi sessions...sooo refreshing...

wanna go around the city, missy....

Students introduced themselves to foreigners and practiced their English...

Rickshaw riders waved their paddy-hats (not the one on the photos. tho' :D) and invited everyone to get on their rickshaws...

Tourists posed and took pictures  (including me :D )...

Sepintas, mirip dengan negeri kita tercinta yah :D....

" I hope he won't be late again this time/..."

Come on mom, a few more metres and we'll sit :)...

I could go ooon and oooon with this :D..

But one thing for sure...I really enjoy this perfect mix of culture and spirits

It warmed my heart..

Again, I tried to recall that perhaps this is the ASEAN spirit...

I was almost certain that I feel the same way as I traveled around this south-east Asian nations

The same brotherhood and sisterhood that bound us together..

Aaah jadi mellow begini :D...

Anyway...kayaknya aku punya hutang cerita deh ya....

Let's get back to the lake now and plunge deeper :p..

Wanna hear the story of the lake? What lake?
Ho Hoan Kiem or Hoan Kim Lake...that's what I'm talking about...

I know you probably have heard the same story before from the websites or else.. And the brochures said the same :D..

Well here it is..

It involved a hero, a sword and a giaaaaant turtle.. 

The telltale started when the King, or rather an Emperor, of Viet Nam,  Le Thian To, was fighting for its freedom from the Chinese. Long story short, he was bestowed by a magical fairy sword, believed to be given by the God of Golden Turtle... Wow.. Can you imagine that.. Turtle God! Then after 10 years of struggle, they won. Viet Nam was free from the enemies (of that time) and prosper. Then, one day, when their hero was cruising the lake, then this giant turtle emerged from the lake, grabbed the sword and returned it to Gods, to whom it belonged.. I guess that's where the name of the lake was originated..
Hoan Kiem Lake... The lake of the returned sword

And that legendary giant turtle ... Well, believe it or not, its dried sample was displayed inside the pagoda and I saw it myself...

So, that's the legend...
Even without such an intriguing telltale Ho Hoan Kiem is a magnet to everyone...

Calm ambience,  clear and clean greeny water, combined with pathwalk along the lake, big trees and flowers, as well as comfy benches, make people tend to stay and relax for a while...

As you gaze around, you will see Turtle Tower, stagering on top of a small island, on one side and the red bridge and Ngoc Son Pagoda on the other side..

Turtle tower....

Turtle tower is beautifully lit in the evening as well.. 

Legend said many turtles emerged in this tiny island on the lake during 1984 drought...that's why the Government and communities took extra efforts to save those creatures...

Then as you walk towards Ngoc Son Temple, you won't miss the red bridge...even early in the morning, many people already come and go passing this lovely place, either to pray or just roam around like me...

 Wanna see what it Ngoc Son Temple like? stick around then and wait for my next page :D>.....

Wandering Ha Noi, Viet Nam #2...

And there came the next day...

where you were racing with time...as the clock was ticking to bring you home....

I had one full day to wander around Ha Noi once again...

Without further due, my itchy feet took me to the center of the city...

Hoan Kiem Lake, beautifully situated in the Old Quarter...

It took me around 15 minutes by taxi from my hotel..the wet and humid weather, perfectly combined with my lack-of-sleep-night and only-God-knows-how many-kilometres-I-have-walked somehow prevented me from walking (again) :D...

So, that beautiful morning started with a walk in the park...well, strolling around the Ho Hoan Kiem or the Lake of the Restored Sword...This lake has an interesting telltale, which I have prepared on my next piece :D..

One of the loveliest and probably the busiest spots near this lake is Ngoc Son Pagoda...

Want to know and see more of this attractive pagoda? 

Check these photos and I'll tell you the story :D...

burning incense...sending our prayers to heaven...

solemnly praying to God...

classic design of clouds and dragons...captivating...

the interior adornment...lovely hand-made cloth with animals, flowers and Gods&Goddesses patterns...

the red doors...

you want your name written in Vietnamese? he's the man :D...

some of the Gos' statues inside the pagoda...

I just loveee the chandelier....

the longer you stay, the more incense burnt....

one of the spots in the temple

the red doors....

Wandering Ha Noi, Viet Nam...

Wandering around Ha Noi, alone, in one and a half day ....

A lot to see, witness, taste, feel and remember...

It all started with a one full day seminar on sharing Indonesian experiences in preparing, presenting and disseminating Universal Periodic Review report...representing my Director in fulfilling the UNDP's invitation to have a presentation on it..

As always, visiting ASEAN fellow member state is always fun...and comfortable..

Sort of a homey feeling with familiar faces, friendly gestures, great food and extremely affordable comfort :D>.. 

More stories coming, starting with this photo series....

right in front of Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum...I was just squatting and my camera was just 'stepping out' of the yellow line boundary when they warned me :D...uups, sorry....

It was an early morning, around 7.30am, weekend...

Mausoleum from a far...green surrounding omits all the eery feeling :D...

This is taken in the temple behind the Ho Chi Minh Museum...

one of the intersections....forgot where exactly....

Myanmar, the Land of Gold: #Shwedagon Pagoda..

Beberapa waktu yang lalu, saya sempat berbagi cerita tentang pengalaman mengunjungi Myanmar, salah satu anggota paling muda ASEAN.

Dan seperti biasa, banyak sekali yang ingin diceritakan. But again, baru sempat menulisnya setelah jeda sekian lama :D..tidak ada maksud lain selain sharing pengalaman berinteraksi dengan penduduk asli seraya menikmati keindahan alam di sana.

So....No excuses, I said to myself. Ayo kita menulis dan lanjuuuut kita mengunjungi Myanmar :D.

After finishing a fruitful Bilateral Dialogue between Indonesia and Myanmar at ministerial level, I finally got a chance to see more of Yangoon..

As always (hiks), I only have a very limited time and of course I managed to visit the famous Shwedagon Temple although I just got a chance to visit it at night.

Myanmar is indeed potential in terms of tourism .

And visit to Shwedagon Pagoda is indeed a must when you come to Yangon, Myanmar.

Coined as the landmark of Myanmar, the Pagoda is situated in Singuttara Hill..no wonder you can easily spot this jewel-studded pagoda even from afar...

Built firstly by King Okkalapa looong long time ago, a shrine believed to house the holy hair pieces of Buddha, has continuously  expanded into one of the holy places for Buddhists.

one of the Buddha statues in Shwedagon.... 

It is incredible.

As you stepped in, you would line up for tickets, took off your shoes and went through a 'tunnel' before welcoming yourself in a huge courtyard full of beautifully adorned temples, statues, and relics. As it is a highly sacred ground, no shoes, socks, and sandals are allowed.

It opens from 4 AM in the morning (definitely for monks and those devoted prayers) until 9 PM, but I guess the foreigners can only visit this place starting from 6 AM.

Here are some photos I took during my visit there.

lines of golden Buddha statues...

send a little prayer here...

gold gold and more gold...

everything is beautifully gold...

sleeping Buddha in one spot...

It was a great visit indeed.

Apalagi setelah tau bahwa stupa yang ada di Pagoda ternyata terbuat dari lebih dari 8000 batang emas!  Ada sekitar 10 ribu batu mulia, mulai dari berlian, safir,merah delima, giok dan topaz! Another wooow indeed. No wonder this stupa is incredibly famous for beautifully capturing the ray of the sun, particularly during sunrise and sunset... too bad I missed it.

Many people were flocking..and the Temple itself is more like a huge Buddhist  complex with so many temples with different sizes, details and adornment...as most of the temples were covered with gold (originally as well as plated :D), it was very grandeur and flashy at the same time.

locals and tourists, young and old...all gathered in Shwedagon...

Coming there with some friends, we stayed around to see people praying as well as gathering cheerfully with families..some of them even had a picnic. 

In one spot, people devotedly prayed, they burnt incense, followed the monks and chanted.

While in another corner, people were happily chatting, eating, sitting and enjoying the surroundings, spending some quality time with family, with one another.

gold...gold...and gooold....

It was a mixed feeling for me.
Knowing that this is a holy ground as well as public space where people spend time relaxing.

I myself try to observe and respect the holiness of this site, including by refraining myself from talking aloud and laughing, as well wearing modest clothes.
   
Well, as you can see in the pictures, it was quite a crowd we have here.

I was trying to communicate with local people while visiting the temple...asking here and there, trying to get more information on some details or asking for help in translating the scripts written on the wall. Well, most of them returned back to me with huge smiles and said 'no English"...some have been kind enough to talk to me in their local English..some of them were flocking near me and saying nothing but local lingo, and some even asked their friends to take pictures with me hehehe....never mind, I still enjoyed my conversations with them :D.

solemnly praying....

more Buddha....

with friends....it was an enjoyable visit indeed....

I really love the details on the roof...

one part of the roofs....

ceramic depicting the story of Buddha...

Burmese elephant :D...

All in all, it was quite an experience.
I guess I need to go back to explore more of this ASEAN  fellow member country and enjoy  more of the beauty of Myanmar..

enjoying Thai food in Yangoon...well well....

while waiting for my flight to Yangoon :D...monks are the priorities :D...

Anybody wants to take me back there?